The U.S. Coast Guard is investigating Sunday’s accident that claimed the life of a volunteer aboard the Star of India.

Gregory Vance Gushaw, 68, of Coronado was up some 50 feet high in the ship’s rigging when he fell and struck his head on the iron-hulled ship before falling into the water.

Coast Guard Lt. Bill Fitzgerald of the marine investigation unit said Gushaw’s safety harness wasn’t hooked when the accident occurred about 10:15 a.m. because he was moving from a rope ladder to rigging on the forward mast of the ship. He was standing on the upper topsail yard on the starboard side of the ship just before the accident.

Fitzgerald said it is not believed that the fall resulted from any type of equipment failure or foul play.

Harbor Police responded to the accident and concluded it was “purely an accidental death,” said Sgt. Dave Fouser.

The spot Gushaw fell from was not an area where he would have secured the harness because he was moving from one point to another, Fouser said.

Both agencies are waiting for the county medical examiner’s report on whether Gushaw suffered a heart attack or had another medical problem before falling. One witness told police Sunday they thought that may have been the case.

Gushaw was training to be recertified to go aloft in anticipation of a sail the ship is scheduled to take in November, said Maritime Museum President and CEO Ray Ashley.

Ashley said no accident like this has happened on the ship since it was brought to San Diego in 1927.

Coast Guard records show the Maritime Museum has had no recent safety issues. An investigation in 2007 found it lacked a certificate of inspection for the Star of India, but Fitzgerald said that appeared to be an oversight by the museum.

Fitzgerald said the investigation into Gushaw’s death would likely take two to three weeks. It’s possible that some action, such as a safety recommendation or request for a policy change, could result but it is too early to tell.

The training has been suspended, but the ship remains open to the public.

Ashley said Gushaw was a dear friend. A former Naval officer who was retired from SAIC, he was a member of the museum’s board of trustees and served as a tour guide and volunteer for at least ten years.